At the invitation of the Acting Governor of St. Petersburg Alexander Beglov, delegations from Krakow (Poland), Dresden (Germany), Qingdao and Shanghai (China), Bishkek and the city of Osh (Kyrgyzstan), Baku (Azerbaijan), and Yerevan ( Armenia), ATU Gagauzia (Moldova), as well as representatives of the Office for Culture and Antiquities of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
On May 26, foreign partners fired a traditional midday shot from the Naryshkin bastion of the Peter and Paul Fortress, and in the evening attended the gala concert “Classics at the Palace Square”.
On May 27, a special program was organized for foreign delegates dedicated to the Year of the Theater in Russia. Representatives of foreign cities and partner regions visited the backstage of the Alexandrinsky Theater and the Bolshoi Drama Theater. G.A. Tovstonogov, met with the leadership, discussed the organization of tour exchanges and the possibility of expanding cooperation. The guests were told about the technical features of the main St. Petersburg stage venues, as well as about the famous theater and ballet schools.
As part of the cultural program, guests visited the Peter and Paul Cathedral with the Grand Ducal Tomb and the State Hermitage Museum.
Developing ideas for further cooperation and searching for new formats for joint events, the partners were presented with the concept of the festival of partner cities “BeSt.Petersburg”, which could include photo exhibitions, fairs, a festival of national cuisine, an exhibition of retro cars, a car rally, a quest for places named after partner cities, a concert program and much more.
For reference: St. Petersburg has 96 cities and 30 partner regions abroad, in which more than 200 million people live.